10 Veterans to Watch this Coming MLB Year
Yeah i put together another little piece for everyone,
Here are 10 thirtysomething position players whose situations are intriguing because of what is needed from them by their respective teams, or because of the crossroads they have reached in their careers:
1. Vladimir Guerrero, Angels
Another offseason has passed and the Angels again have failed to add a player who can suitably complement Guerrero's production, or cover for him if the right fielder is hurt. And some executives and scouts who've watched Guerrero in recent years see signs of physical regression in his movement, if not his production -- he hit .329 last season, with 200 hits, 116 RBI, and 33 home runs.
"He's on the slide," said one scout. "He's turned into much more of a streak hitter than he used to be. It used to be that if you tried to pitch him inside and you didn't bury the ball inside, he'd hit it good. Now you can get away with a little more, and I think it's because there are days when his back doesn't feel so good. He seems to go through periods where any tweak in his back affects his swing."
He's a gifted athlete, but he doesn't have a great body, and he swings as hard as [Gary] Sheffield. When he's going good, he can be as dominant as always. But it's a matter of time now before he breaks down."
The Angels have a promising young hitter in Howie Kendrick, some production out of veteran Garret Anderson, and shortstop Orlando Cabrera is coming off a solid season. But they have question marks at first and third base, and catcher Mike Napoli hit .164 after the All-Star break. The Angels still desperately need Guerrero to hit; it'll be interesting to see whether he stays healthy.
2. Todd Helton, Rockies
Maybe the Rockies will decide that it's better, big picture, to shed his salary, or maybe they'll decide to wait for the kind of return they need for the best player in Colorado franchise history.
He could land in Boston and have a chance to play in the postseason for the first time in his career and redefine his legacy, as a Hall of Fame candidate. If he stays in Colorado and musters a 10th consecutive season of .300 or better, the Rockies will probably find a way to trade him.
But if he struggles, a poor season will reinforce the idea that he's a player in decline, and the Rockies wouldn't get even a nibble of trade interest for him.
The Red Sox and Rockies will hold a conference call this morning, writes Tracy Ringolsby, with the two sides still in an impasse as of Sunday.
The Rockies apparently will make this trade if Manny Delcarmen is included. If Boston wants Helton -- and it seems that the Red Sox do want him, because they would on the hook for about $50 million of the $90.1 million owed to him in salary over the next six seasons -- it's hard to imagine that they would let the inclusion of Delcarmen be the deal-breaker. Or maybe the Red Sox are reading the Rockies as being so desperate to get out from a lot of Helton's contract that they will eventually be willing to take anything for him. We'll see.
Rockies GM Dan O'Dowd will return to the office today after tending to a family matter, writes Troy Renck.
3. Gary Sheffield, Tigers
The Tigers needed a middle-of-the-order hitter who provides more power, more on-base percentage and fewer strikeouts, and Sheffield fits all of that, as he rejoins a manager he knows and respects. Sheffield is 38 years old and coming off an injury-plagued year, but he seems to reinvent himself every few years, depending on how angry he is at somebody. And it's clear, from his ugly departure after the trade from New York to the words that have leaked out from his book, that the chip on his shoulder can be blamed on the Yankees.
His vendettas sometimes seem a little ridiculous, but they do serve a purpose. "He gives the Tigers a fire in the clubhouse, in addition into his ability," said an NL talent evaluator. "That's a good deal if he stays healthy. He has to be wronged to be a real good player, whether it's actual or mythical, and that's the way it looks now."
4. Lance Berkman, Astros
Lacking depth in their lineup, the Astros ranked 25th in runs in the majors last year, and despite the lack of consistent production in front of or behind him in the batting order, Berkman had an incredible season, driving in 136 runs, with 74 extra-base hits and a .420 on-base percentage.
Now he has Carlos Lee swinging alongside him in the Houston lineup, and we'll see how much of a difference that makes. The talent evaluator is curious to see how Lee's conditioning is affected by the fact that he has his $100 million deal in place. "I want to see what he looks like in spring training," said the scout. "Late last season, I bet he weighed close to 280 -- real fat. He couldn't play the last game of the season, and his range in left field for the last six weeks of the season was about the size of a postage stamp.
"But he can still hit, and I think he's going to help Berkman put up huge numbers."
5. Andruw Jones, Braves
He'll get a lot of headlines this year, and be connected, through trade rumors, to just about every contender in baseball leading up to the July 31 deadline. Some things to keep in mind:
He'll be eligible for free agency in the fall of '07.
He's got 10-and-5 rights and can veto any proposed deal.
His agent is Scott Boras, whose clients always try to play the market when they get this close to free agency.
The last two years, Jones has 92 homers and 257 RBI.
He's won Gold Gloves in nine consecutive seasons.
If he has a big year, shows again that he is much more serious about his conditioning than he was three or four years ago, he could get a $100 million deal. Jones turns 30 on April 23.
6. Derrek Lee, Cubs
The Chicago first baseman was limited to just 175 at-bats last season because of a broken wrist, and despite all the money that the Cubs spent this winter, his success is no less important than it was last year to the club. Alfonso Soriano will create opportunity at the top of the lineup, but the Cubs still need somebody to generate hits and runs in the middle of the order. Aramis Ramirez can be erratic, Jacque Jones may or may not be with the team on Opening Day and Cliff Floyd has some injury issues. The Cubs need Lee to be a consistent offensive force, the way he was in his career year of 2005.
7. Ichiro Suzuki, Mariners
He is shifting to center field this season, which will only augment his already remarkable résumé of six consecutive seasons of .300 or better, six straight seasons of more than 200 hits, six consecutive seasons of more than 100 runs scored and more than 30 stolen bases, and six consecutive Gold Gloves. He's been a pretty good player since joining the big leagues, and Suzuki will be eligible for free agency after this season. The Mariners say signing Suzuki is a priority, and it remains to be seen what dollar figure they've attached to their most prominent star.
Seattle's best option may be to trade Ichiro, writes Phil Rogers.
8. Jermaine Dye, White Sox
He's another slugger eligible for free agency after this season, and as we've seen this winter, White Sox general manager Kenny Williams is making it a priority to make his team younger -- and, in turn, cheaper. Dye had his 33rd birthday on Sunday, and he's coming off an MVP-type season, the best year of his career, with 44 homers and 120 RBI in 146 games. There's no reason to think he can't have another great year, especially with Tadahito Iguchi, Paul Konerko and Jim Thome hitting around him, and that would create enormous pressure on the White Sox to re-sign Dye.
Dye has made about $46 million in salary in his career, and he could more than double that if he has a big season. Williams didn't want to talk about Dye's status on Sunday, writes Mark Gonzales.
9. Mike Lowell, Red Sox
Numerous scouts and executives thought the Red Sox third baseman was cooked as an effective player last spring training, and lo and behold, Lowell had an excellent season, hitting .280 with 47 doubles and 20 homers, while playing spectacular defense. He turns 33 in February, has some injury history, and has reached the stage of his career when the evaluators will wonder the same thing from year to year: Can he do it for another season?
"I'm not sure," said the scout. "A great kid, and he made a great adjustment, hitting the ball the other way; he's a smart guy. What Fenway Park does is disrupt pitching patterns, and when he started going to the other way, what pitchers should have done is pitch inside -- but they know that, in the past, he's hit with power. They may have been afraid to pitch inside, somewhat, because of The Wall."
But that's what they should do this year, pitch him inside. Will he be pitched the same way? Will he be able to adjust to that, if they do? I'm just not sure. He had something to prove last year."
The Red Sox must have their doubts, because they have shopped Lowell repeatedly since July, and if the Helton deal is completed with Colorado, he'll be included.
10. A-Rod, Yankees
Whether you think it's because he's got the biggest contract in history or because he seems destined to become the all-time home run leader, the man is a lightning rod, and his contract situation will hang over him the entire year.
He can opt out of his deal after the season, and even if he repeatedly insists that he has no intention of doing so, everybody will remember that another Scott Boras client, J.D. Drew, said the same thing last year. There are those within the Yankees' organization who are assuming that A-Rod will walk away at the end of the 2007 season, and everything he does -- or doesn't do -- will be viewed through that prism.
